My kitchen is ... an absolute dream in the practical and spatial sense. It has a giant island bench made of reclaimed timber, a walk-in pantry, tons of plants and a gigantic ceiling. It’s also open to the living space, which is a nice change, as at our old house I was banished to the kitchen. In the depths of winter, it was warmer inside the fridge. However, my old, crappy, frozen kitchen had most incredible light. The one thing I miss greatly in my fancy new kitchen.
My favourite kitchen tool is ... my old tatty coffee pot. It’s the first thing I go to every morning. The rest of the day wouldn’t happen without it. As Pavement once sang, “no one serves coffee, no one wakes up”.It isn’t a thing a beauty by any stretch of the imagination. It’s a piece of junk I found in a charity shop years ago. It makes my coffee taste slightly metallic, but I’ve become so used to it that any normal coffee just tastes weird.
My storecupboard staple is ... buckwheat. Since being diagnosed with coeliac disease I’ve been looking for a comfort snack to replace the loaves and loaves of bread I consumed. Buckwheat has taken up the mantle quite nicely. I’ve also learned, from many hours of Dr Google and Nutritionist Google, is it’s actually pretty good for me. Which is a relief, as I eat it often and I eat it plenty.
When I’m starving I ... love basmati rice. Don’t judge me! I love the smell it gives the house when it’s cooking and I love the warmth it gives my belly when I am eating it. Of course, I don’t just eat it on its own; I swirl some sriracha over the top to give it that extra boost of poor uni student flavour.
My culinary inspiration is … my kids – it may sound corny, but I love to make food that makes them happy, excited and gets them interested in cooking and eating. It’s a real victory to have them ask for something I made for a past meal. It means that meal was something special to them. We don’t eat fancy, we just eat simple and tasty.
My best-kept kitchen secret is ... the top shelf. It has all the chocolate.
When I’m invited to dinner I always take ... a really simple cake. When someone brings one to my home, I go weak at the knees. So I just assume it does the same for other people too. The smell of a citrus or a cinnamony apple cake fills any home with good vibes and the cups of tea do flow. People always ask for the recipe too, as these cakes look simple enough for people to think: “I can make that.” They encourage people to go home and bake their own.
Everything tastes better with ... someone else.
When I go shopping I … make sure I’m not hungry. Budget blowout right there.
For dinner tonight ... I’m having fish and chips! We have an amazing trout farm up the road, where it takes about 5 minutes to catch a fish. I then take home my freshly hunted trout and get my fella to smoke it. We also live near the world’s best potatoes (not official, just my opinion). I chop them up with some lemon, rosemary and thyme and make chunky chips. We dunk our chips in aioli made from our home-grown garlic, some lemons my short friend can’t reach on her lemon tree and eggs from our friend’s chooks. A meal made from ours and our friend’s back gardens.
- Kate Berry is a Melbourne-based food blogger and editor of the Lunch Lady books. She will be taking over Cook’s Instagram account this weekend. Follow @guardian_cook for updates. hellolunchlady.com.au
